The Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party announced Tuesday it has endorsed U.S. Sen. Tina Smith for re-election.
Smith won the DFL’s backing in electronic balloting conducted over the past week after the party’s convention scheduled for last weekend was postponed following the murder of George Floyd and the subsequent civil unrest that swept the Twin Cities.
Smith, 62, of Minneapolis was lieutenant governor of Minnesota from 2015 to 2018, when then-Gov. Mark Dayton appointed her to the Senate seat vacated by Al Franken. She won the 2018 election to fill the remainder of Franken’s term.
Republicans last weekend endorsed former congressman and radio talk show host Jason Lewis to challenge Smith. But before they face off, Lewis must win the Aug. 11 GOP primary against four other Republican candidates, and Smith has a DFL primary contest with four other Democrats.